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On the greyest of grey afternoons in Paisley, St Mirren and Aberdeen served up a 90 minutes that managed to embody the gloom hanging over the Simple Digital Arena.

In fairness, this was perhaps exactly what was to be expected from two sides with a very casual relationship with finding the back of the net.

The efforts of Sam Cosgrove have, to an extent, covered up the Dons' profligacy in the final third, but even he found himself bogged down in this mire of a football match.

Derek McInnes' inclusion of Matty Kennedy in the starting line-up hinted at a great attacking intent on his part but the former St Johnstone man endured a frustrating afternoon in the most goalless of goalless draws imaginable.

It leaves the Dons still stumbling after Motherwell in third and St Mirren clear enough of the Premiership drop zone, but that's about it really.

And, yet, there could so easily have been an early goal.

Vaclav Hladky's pass to Conor McCarthy inside the home box was stolen away by Niall McGinn but the defender recovered quickly enough to prevent a disaster of St Mirren's own making.

Aberdeen were now dominating the middle third with Funso Ojo and Dylan McGeouch moving the ball tidily but without any real forward impetus.

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Sam Cosgrove and McCarthy were tussling regularly and the former was left incredulous when referee Don Robertson waved play on after he'd been hauled down advancing into the box.

The incident threatened to inject some life into an otherwise lifeless encounter as Scott McKenna's deflected first-time effort from 18 yards almost looped under the crossbar.

But that brief flurry of something approaching excitement proved a false dawn - for Aberdeen, at least.

Instead, they almost conspired to hand St Mirren a half-time lead.

McGeouch's careless blind backpass set Jon Obika free in behind but the striker's effort crashed back off the post.

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Aberdeen struggled to find any coherence in the final third and Saints failed to capitalise on the, admittedly fleeting, opportunities that came there way.

That a midfield stramash which left two Aberdeen players on the deck and the ball pinging around back to front was the only thing to raise the volume inside the Simple Digital Arena tells a story.

That was until Ilkay Durmus shifted away from Shay Logan and rifled a dipping effort goalwards that just failed to drop enough.

Aberdeen kept at it, in fairness, but a fluffed Lewis Ferguson effort and a brief penalty box scramble were all they could muster.

In the end, the mere two minutes of added time were a small but welcome mercy for those in attendance.

3 talking points

Dons lack impetus

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The Dons made a concerted effort to recruit Kennedy this month rather than waiting until the summer and it's clear why. Such are the cracks in their attacking approach, even Cosgrove's prolific form hasn't been able to paper over them. Having got his man from St Johnstone, McInnes inserted Kennedy directly into his starting line-up but expecting his mere presence to make an immediate substantial difference would be, well, optimistic. There's an incoherence and, seemingly, a lack of confidence about Aberdeen going forward. Shots sail harmlessly clear of the goal or, worse, aren't taken at all. The unrest among the natives is more than understandable.

Saints need a ruthless streak

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St Mirren have the lowest chance conversion rate in the Premiership and they passed up two gilt-edged opportunities to punish Aberdeen's lack of cutting edge. Obika's one-on-one with Joe Lewis was by far the clearest cut chance of the afternoon but a header from McCarthy, which should've been flagged offside, will have frustrated Goodwin just as much. Durmus' second-half solo effort which almost found the top corner points to a lack of fortune contributing to that 6.9 per cent conversion rate, which will have dipped even lower following this 90 minutes.

Drab, drab, drab

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Fair play to the band of Aberdeen fans who trekked half way across the country for a 12.30 Sunday kick-off only to be rewarded with this. A contest which will prove as forgettable as this match report, there was barely a moment in the closing stages were you felt either side had the bit between their teeth. In the end, it's a decent point for Saints in their bid to keep some distance between themselves and the drop zone. In Irish defender McCarthy, Goodwin looks to have unearthed a promising player and, if they can just find a similar spark at the other end, their survival mission will likely be less nerve-shredding than last year's.